“It hasn’t been the greatest year for natural gas prices either, but it is interesting when you look at how these companies make their money and where their reserves are,” he says.

Although companies also invest in credit card and chemical subsidiaries or shipping and transport services offered to other firms, Fox says the majority of profits come from exploration and drilling, as well as selling oil and natural gas.

So what could we call these energy companies instead?

Fox suggests the term “hydrocarbon.”

“All of these companies, that’s what they do – that’s their expertise,” he says. “Getting hydrocarbons out of the ground and then refining it and then transporting and selling it.”